Originally posted on February 28, 2005

GL: Over the past couple of years every time I've asked you about moving down to welterweight, you told me you couldn't make the weight any longer. Why is welterweight suddenly the place for you to be? "Well, I'm working a little harder to lose the weight and I'm walking around about ten pounds less than I would if I was fighting at junior middleweight. Returning to welterweight is going to be great, because I know once I start to hit these guys with those eight ounce gloves on, people are going to see some explosive stuff."

GL: You'll be facing David Estrada on ESPN's PPV on April 23. Can you tell us what you know about Estrada?

Shane Mosley: "Nothing really. I've only seen him in one fight with Chris Smith. He seems to be a good young fighter, but I'm coming in there to do my thing and I'm looking to make an explosive return to welterweight."

GL: Why did you choose appearing on the ESPN PPV instead of HBO's April 9 PPV?

SM: "We committed to the ESPN PPV first and I felt like we had an obligation to them since that's what we agreed to first. "

GL: How important is it to you to not only defeat Estrada, but blow him away? Do you feel you MUST make that kind of a statement in this fight?

SM: "Fighting is important to me period, but I'm anxious to get back in there at 147 with those eight ounce gloves on. If I go in there and fight my fight, people are going to take notice and there's going to be a whole lot of statements being made."

GL: Do those eight ounce gloves really make that much of a difference to where you feel you're going to be overpowering guys at welterweight?

SM: "Definitely. I think a lot of guys at 154 would have been stopped with them eight ounce gloves on."

GL: Who do you like in Margarito-Cintron? And is the winner of that fight somebody that's on your hit-list?

SM: "Neither of them are really on my radar right now, but like I told you before, I'm looking to run through this whole division. I'm going after all of them one by one so eventually, I'm getting to all of them."

GL: What did you think about Zab's performance in the rematch with Cory Spinks?

SM: "It was a pretty decent fight, but it played out exactly how I thought it would. Zab Judah figured him out at the end of the first fight once he started charging in. And once Zab knew he could hurt him going into that second fight I knew he was going to get him. Cory Spinks did a great job of keeping him off in the first fight and he tried in the second fight but Zab just caught with him with a good shot."

GL: Is Zab Judah one of the guys you're looking to fight?

SM: "I've always been known to fight the best and right now he's undisputed at welterweight so of course he's one of the guys I want to get it on with, but I'm coming for everybody in the division and he's not the only big fight out there for me. I really believe that I'm going to be the man in the division and he's going to need me to make big money more than I'm going to need him. Titles are all good and I'm coming for his belts, but they're not everything to me."

GL: Boxingtalk interviewed Judah in his suite after the Spinks fight, I asked him about all of the big money options at welterweight including yourself. Zab responded by throwing some insults your way, calling you 'Sugar' Shane Nosley, and saying Nosley ran from me before so I'm not going to be in a rush to fight him..How do you feel about what he said?

SM: "I really don't feel nothing about that. Zab has always had a big mouth, I thought Kostya Tszyu shut it up when he knocked him out in two rounds, but that didn't happen so just let him talk. We'll see who's running from who if we ever fight each other. One day we're going to get it on and like I said, I'm the man in this division, I don't need a championship belt, if Zab Judah fights me with all of his belts and manages to pick up a few more of them by the time, I would still make more money than he does so what is he really talking about?"

GL: I've heard rumblings that if you and Kostya Tszyu win your next fights the two of you would meet in the fall. Is that something that you'd care to elaborate on?

SM: "Not really, no. I'm just going to take it one fight at a time and we'll see what happens from there."

GL: Both you and Oscar De La Hoya have made it clear to me in the recent months that a third fight between the two of you is pretty much out of the equation. With the two of you both moving down to welterweight, you're going to be asked about fighting Oscar again a trillion times, does that get frustrating when both you and De La Hoya say the fight is out of the equation?

SM: "Well, if the people demand the fight enough and it becomes the fight that everybody wants to see then anything is possible. I just don't think it's a fight that's going to happen anytime soon though."

GL: How do you think the change of trainers from Joe Goossen to John David Jackson will work out?

SM: "I think it's going to work out pretty good. John David Jackson has worked with us since before the first De La Hoya fight and it's going to be something that works out well because he's a former world champion and there's a lot of things he could help me add to my game as far as slickness goes."

GL: Is there anything you'd like to say in closing?

SM: "I want everyone to tune in to ESPN PPV on April 23, 'Sugar' Shane Mosley is back at welterweight and I'm looking to put on an impressive performance on a great night of boxing Las Vegas, Nevada."

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